


You

by honestgrins



Series: Until the Bitter End [11]
Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-09
Updated: 2017-02-09
Packaged: 2018-09-23 01:43:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9635228
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honestgrins/pseuds/honestgrins





	

_This is just something I couldn't get out of my head and needed to write. Post 8x11._

* * *

"It should have been you."

Caroline stiffened at Stefan's quiet declaration. He sounded so damn confused, like it was a cosmic joke that she wasn't the one to trigger his humanity. Maybe it _was_ a cosmic joke that only the cure to vampirism could make the Ripper human again.

Stefan was human. She was still processing what that meant.

She had brought him home to the boarding house, Damon insisting that he be the one to take care of Bonnie after her devastating loss. As much as she wanted to comfort her friend, Caroline knew she wouldn't be up to the task. Not only would her weak defenses of Stefan's true nature just hurt Bonnie more, but the small buzz of resentment in her veins would no doubt encourage Caroline to blame her friend for injecting Stefan with the cure.

Bonnie had a right to defend herself from the Ripper on a mission, and Caroline would have wanted her to. Still, she hated how everything fell apart.

Enzo was dead. Bonnie was heartbroken.

Stefan was human.

Laying his still unconscious form in their bed had been bittersweet. Finally, he was home - just not the same as when he left. The fact he had woken up at all was a small miracle considering the cure's uncertainty and confusing rules. His eyes were the same hazy green, and she cried as soon as they met hers. He still had that cartoonish furrow in his brow when he frowned, and Caroline just wanted to press it with kisses until she felt whole again.

Instead, she had forced herself to hold back, to calmly explain what happened as Stefan slowly came to the realization that the world felt different to him than it had before. "You were supposed to be my trigger, not the cure," he said, running an exasperated hand through his hair.

Caroline fought the urge to fix it, clenching her fists tightly. She was twitchy, out of control, and she hated it. "I'm just glad you're back," she lied. Her tongue bled from the tense hold of her teeth, not that Stefan could smell the blood anymore. A part of her was glad, sure, but her heart was breaking and she couldn't possibly put that burden on anyone else. Stefan seemed so lost, it wouldn't have been fair to add her issues to the pile. "You're home, and that's all that matters."

"No, Caroline," he groaned, pulling at his hair. "I was horrible to you, that has to matter."

"It did, we're not engaged anymore." She shrugged at his pained look. "I still love you, I still want you to be okay."

"Are you okay?"

Tears welled in her eyes, fake smile already plastered on her face. Stefan pinned her with an unimpressed gaze; he could always see through her. Licking her lips, Caroline shook her head. "You can't change the past, Stefan. You just have to find a way to deal with it and move on." Her voice sounded small to her. "I remember a time when you wanted the cure, for you and Elena to live happily ever after."

"I want a happily ever after with you," he said, pulling her left hand in both of his.

"You don't have to make me feel better-"

"No." He sat up to dig through his jeans, apparently pleased that Caroline hadn't tried to change his clothes. Finding what he was looking for, he placed it in her hand. "Even the Ripper knew better than to throw this away."

Her ring felt heavier than she remembered, though it had barely been any time since she threw it back in his face. "It should have been you," he repeated, nearly begging her to listen. Leaning forward, he pressed his forehead against hers.

Running her fingers across his jaw, Caroline just soaked in his warmth. Her free hand slid to his chest. His heartbeat thrummed beneath her palm, a cruel reminder of what she had just lost. "You're human now," she whispered, pained. "I love you, and I want you to know that it's okay. You don't have to spare my feelings."

Stefan pulled back, his expression confused and helpless. "Caroline, I play games as the Ripper," he explained. "Every word is calculated, every taunt meant to push buttons for nothing more than entertainment."

"They have to come from somewhere."

And that was the problem. She knew that Stefan hated to hurt her; she trusted him with her insecurities because he would never want to use them against her. It wasn't that he tried to tear her down, it was that she let him.

"I know," he sighed, his uncanny ability to sense her very thoughts. "I'm sorry, Caroline, and I love you." Sitting back on the bed, his head fell to his hands. "This wasn't how the deal with Cade was supposed to go. I screwed up."

Letting her hands graze along his thighs, Caroline's heart wrenched at the pain he was in. "I'm sorry, too. You only took Cade's deal because of me."

"But I'm the one who took it too far. I killed Enzo," he cried. "I almost killed Bonnie, Elena. I ruined everything."

"Maybe," she admitted. "But life goes on. Your days are numbered now, do you really want to waste them on self-pity and regret? You can have a whole new future."

Stefan glanced up, paling at the resignation on her face. "Why do you keep saying 'you'?" he asked in a scared voice.

"What do you mean?" She shrugged, feigning nonchalance.

"Caroline," he said more sternly. "I want a future with you. 'We' were planning a wedding for June. 'We' were building a life together." Watching her carefully, he reached for her left hand again. "Is that not what you want anymore?"

Her lip trembled as his eyes bored into hers. "I-" Swallowing her fear, Caroline tried to keep her voice level. "I don't want to hold you back, now that you can have the life you always wanted. A normal life, maybe have a family with a girl who's never heard of vampires, let alone been one, and-"

Stefan was kissing her before she'd even noticed he leaned in. It was rough, heady with the human taste of him and the tempting scent of his blood. Teeth gnashed against hers until she pulled back, afraid of hurting him now that she was stronger.

Because she was still a vampire.

"Wait," Caroline gasped. She smiled at the searching way Stefan lunged for another kiss, hazy with need as she dodged him. "Just wait. We have a lot more to talk about."

With a sad grin, Stefan relented. "As long as there's a 'we'," he sighed.

Looking at the man she loved, despite all the pain they had been through and the struggles they had yet to face, Caroline realized that maybe, just maybe, life did go on.

Maybe that happily ever after was still possible, even if it was a little different than they had expected.


End file.
